CrossFit HQ recently published an overview of the 2022 Games season, outlining some key dates, as well as a summary of the different competition stages. So what do we know so far?
Let’s re-wind for a moment, and take it back to basics:
What actually are The CrossFit Games?
The CrossFit Games are an annual athletic competition, owned and run by CrossFit, LLC. Athletes compete in a series of events at the Games, which may be various standard CrossFit workouts consisting of metabolic conditioning exercises (think ergs, running – what we tend to call ‘cardio’ on the whiteboard!) weightlifting, and gymnastics movements, as well as a handful of activities from other sports such as swimming, cycling, and strongman. The events generally are not revealed before the Games, and although the format of some of the events will be very familiar to the athletes, many of the exact details regarding number of workouts, movement combinations, length of workouts and even location have often been kept secret right up until they enter the competition floor.
The variety, volume and intensity, not to mention unexpected twists to workouts, challenge the athletes both physically and mentally.
Winners of the CrossFit Games earn cash prizes, and the title of “Fittest on Earth.” The competition started in 2007 and has been held every year since, normally in the summer.
So what do we know so far about the 2022 Season?
The Open
As previous years, the season will begin with the CrossFit Open: stage one, which anyone and everyone who wishes to can register for and take part in. Last year, the Open consisted of 3 workouts across 3 weeks (with one released each work, to be completed within 4 days of release). The forma is expected to be the same this year, with registration for the Open launching on January 13th, and the first workout commencing on February 24th! The next two will be released on the following two weekends, with the final date for submission of the third and final workout being March 14th.
The workouts will be released with different variations depending on the athlete category, including the classic ‘RX and Scaled’ versions, as well as various age category groups for teens and masters, and various adaptive categories. In fact, CrossFit have hinted that we should expect to see additional divisions this year making the Games even more inclusive, with the following statement:
“Last year marked an important milestone in the evolution and growth of the CrossFit Games with the addition of two new age groups and eight new adaptive divisions. This year will bring exciting new opportunities for competitive athletes and fans alike — so stay tuned for updates.”
So, back to the Open – participants will be able to take part across the globe, submitting scores online in the hopes to make the cut. The top 10% from each continental region will advance to the online Quarter Finals.
Quarter Finals
As last year, the quarter finals will take place online. Athletes will take place in a series of workouts spread over a weekend, submitting scores and accompanying videos online in the hopes to advance to the next round. These workouts typically feature some higher skill gymnastics, heavier loads and more complex movements than those featured in the Open. 300 male and 300 female athletes will then progress to the Semi Finals. The number of athlete spaces varies in some regions, based on the number of participates CrossFit expect to see – for example, 120 places (for each men and women) will be allocated to the top performers from the North American region, 60 in Europe, and 30 in each of the other continental regions. For individual athletes, these online Quarters will take place just 10 days after The Open finishes, on March 24th-27th.
Semi Finals
All being well with regard to the Covid-19 Pandemic, the hopes are to hold all of the Semi Finals in person. Last year, many of these were taken online, and hundreds of athletes missed out on the chance of taking part in a large in-person event despite having advanced so far in the competition. The re-introduction of this in-person stage will be an exciting opportunity for competitive athletes, and a brilliant spectacle for those who want to witness the action! These are expected t take place from the end of May until mid June, in various locations around the world. Only a small handful of the Semi-Finals athletes will advance to the final stage: The CrossFit Games. Again, numbers vary slightly – so we expect to see a total of only 10 male and 10 female European athletes (5 from each of the two planned European Semi-Finals) to progress to the Games.
Extra Qualifying Opportunities
As previous years, there are some additional qualifying opportunities for athletes, including a ‘Last Chance Qualifier’ which is scheduled to take place at the end of June / start of July, for any athletes who just missed out on a Games spot – to have a final stab at making the cut!
The Games
The top 40 men and 40 women from around the world will come together to compete for the title of Fittest on Earth at the 2022 Nobull CrossFit Games, to take place in the first week of August 2022.
For those who followed coach Helen’s journey to the Games with her team AOD Fitness, you will be excited to know that the team division is of course returning, following a very similar format to that of the individual athletes. Similarly the age group and adaptive divisions will see a very similar qualifying format for athletes and teams to advance to the games. For the full details and breakdown of qualifying places, head over to the official CrossFit Games website!
What does this mean for us?
In previous years (the year of the Covid-19 pandemic aside), at SCFIT we have hosted a fun and inclusive ‘Friday Night Lights’ spectacle each Friday for the 3 weeks of the CrossFit Open. Members would come down and book onto a particular heat, where they would carry out their chosen version of the Open workout. They would be assigned a judge (a coach or fellow SCFIT member) to count their reps and check their standards, and importantly – cheer them on! For those who wished to submit scores online, they were welcome to do so, where they would be verified by a member of the SCFIT staff before submission. For those who were just there to have fun – awesome! They could still join in on the workout, and enjoy a brilliantly buzzing atmosphere not dissimilar to one of our famous Throwdowns. We hope to run a similar in-house three-week event this year, so keep your eyes peeled and ears to the wall for news and updates from us at SCFIT!
So there we have it – what we know so far, with a brief overview of dates, numbers and format! Whether competitive CrossFit is your thing or not, it’s an enormously fun way to get involved in the SCFIT and wider CrossFit community. Whether you plan on having a stab at the Open workouts yourself for the first time, or maybe you’re hoping to qualify for the Quarters or Semis, or perhaps you just want to get in on the action and hope to come down to Friday Night Lights and cheer on some fellow members – there’s something for everyone. Open 2022 here we come!
Got a question? Get in touch! Whether you’re on the lookout for a new gym and want to find out about us, or if you’re interested in competing and want to find out about our Competitors’ programmeming options, we are all ears and here to help!